Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community

22. While noting the delegation of the State party’s statement that the problem is now being tackled, the Committee is concerned about reports of discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons (arts. 2, 10, 12, 13 and 16).

The Committee recommends that the State party adopt effective measures to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons from any discrimination or aggression, and ensure that all cases of violence are promptly, effectively and impartially investigated, tried and punished, and that victims obtain appropriate redress. The Committee refers the State party to section V, on “Protection for individuals and groups made vulnerable by discrimination or marginalization”, of its general comment No. 2 (2007).

Training

24. The Committee takes note of the information supplied by the State party on training activities in the field of human rights and the prohibition of torture for staff of the National Civil Police and the prison service, but regrets that it has received no detailed information about programmes for other State employees related to the prohibition and prevention of torture. It also observes that no information has been provided about the impact of training activities on the incidence of torture and ill-treatment (art. 10).

The State party should strengthen existing training programmes and ensure that all public servants, particularly police, army and prison officers, migration officials and members of the judiciary and the Public Prosecution Service, attend regular, suitable and compulsory training courses on the Convention, which include strategies for dealing with violence against children, women, indigenous peoples, human rights defenders and the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. The State party should also ensure that the Manual on Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Istanbul Protocol) is a compulsory topic in the training of all professionals involved in the investigation and documentation of cases of torture and ill-treatment, and that it is widely publicized and applied. It further recommends that the State party develop and apply a methodology to evaluate the effectiveness of training programmes in reducing torture and ill-treatment.

Link to full text of the report: Concluding Observations-CAT-Guatemala-2013-eng